I had two days doing other things and, in the interim, the bulk of the blanket weed has mysteriously, and thankfully, disappeared from the bottom pond and the tadpoles have emerged in droves. There is now an international comma and apostrophe convention on the beach of the pond, which is almost black with them.
The tiny splash of rain has emboldened me to sow the in the garden seeds. I have attempted straight lines to distinguish them from weeds but as Lyra walked over each bed immediately after sowing I suspect orderly lines of seedlings are not going to be a feature. If only it will rain just a little more to get them going….
In the greenhouse all is progress. Obviously my seeds are not germinating nearly as fast as Keith’s, but the chilli pepper at least are underway and I can see some cosmos coming. I always sow some perennials and they are much more sluggish to come. This does not stop me fussing at them every day. Some of my cuttings have taken though, and the others look hopeful still. We also have new potatoes in pots about to flower and in the fruit cage most of the bushes are starting to flower so we will not starve!
The few days of colder weather also got me going on facemark production, having promised some to friends in London. The old bedroom curtains are still delivering! However, to spare the males of the household the shame of floral curtain wear, I have knocked up some in “business casual” beige.
Might need to dig out some now redundant work clothes and see about pinstripes…………..
Live from Ruthven 
Hi Karen, I am really enjoying your blog, and the wonderful photos although it also makes me keenly aware of my own pathetic gardening efforts. Building planter boxes is easy- getting things to grow in them is another problem, at least for me. My sunroom is my greenhouse and the happiest plant in there is the single courgette to germinate, and it grows visibly by the day. In your greenhouse, what is the purpose of the gravel layer under the trays? One thing for sure, you are much farther forward in the borders than we are up here. Anyway, happy retirement. It is exhausting, I can promise you. Love, Lois
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It’s little baked clay balls, they are very lightweight and help with drainage by absorbing excess watering but also act as a source of water for when it gets too dry I think. We have a huge bag of spares as they stick to the roots of anything that outgrows it’s pot so they are turning up in the garden etc.
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